The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.

Loading ...

Loading ...

This story appears in the {{article.article.magazine.pretty_date}} issue of {{article.article.magazine.pubName}}. Subscribe

Tim Wu: Image via Wikipedia

With all the news swirling around Google, Verizon, the FCC and network neutrality the last couple of days, it's a bit fortuitous that last weekend I devoured a proof of Tim Wu's latest book The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires. Wu is the Columbia law prof. who coined the term "network neutrality" and his new book (available for purchase in early November) is a brilliant exploration of the oscillations of communications technologies between "open" and "closed" from the early days of telephone up through Hollywood and broadcast television up to the Internet era. His underlying thesis is that industry structure (unfortunately in communications all too often a monopoly or oligarchy) determines freedom of expression.

This is terrifying stuff when you start to think about Verizon charging different prices for different quality of service on its network. Because while we like to think of the Internet as being owned by no one, the reality is a relatively small number of telecommunications companies own the Internet's so-called backbones. (Wu has a marvelous chart in his book detailing the rebuilding of Ma Bell, from the break-up AT&T in 1984 into the 8 Baby Bells, which then merged back together, into just three big players, Qwest, Verizon and AT&T. AT&T itself is composed of 5 of the former Baby Bells).

If these big players who control the Internet's Master Switch are allowed to discriminate (based on price or other criteria) among information providers who want access to their wires, they will become, unwitting or not, censors. Resist. An open Internet is worth fighting for.